THE Zululand region will take centre stage in Japan as Dukuduku, Khula Village and St Lucia become the stars of a primetime family TV show.

The makers of Secret Doors, a travel-type programme produced by NHK, Japan’s national public broadcaster and the most prestigious channel in the country, were recently in the area immersing themselves in all it has to offer.

Eita Nakamura (director), Toshi Koide (cameraman), Hiro Onoyama (cameraman) and David Bush, their British-Japanese coordinator who lives in Cape Town, have spent 11 days among the locals, showcasing the region through the voices of those who live here.

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“I came here on a recce a few weeks ago, and it was immediately apparent that this was the place for our programme,” said Bush.

“People were extremely welcoming, but the most interesting part was the unusual and unique way that people live with the nearby park and wildlife, and particularly with the wildlife within St Lucia town itself.

“Although Secret Doors is a programme about people and the community, we can’t really do it without including the park and all the animals.”

Asking the right questions

Bush said they start by conducting a survey, asking locals what they enjoy most about living in St Lucia; their favourite food – “food is very important to the Japanese!” said Bush.

They also ask locals if there’s someone they’d like featured on the show; what brings people together here, and what ideas people have about Japan.

The stars of the show

The team spent time with Nkosi Lindani, who has recently launched Seabirds FC, a soccer club he envisions growing exponentially.

“His partner Thandeka wants to start a crèche in Khula Village,” said Bush.

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“Because they were some of our featured people, we’ve been going to football practices and a game, and we’ve been speaking to the young men in the team, which is great community engagement.”

Bush said they also met iNduna Sithole, who shared the area’s history, and his sister Maureen, who invited them to her home for a traditional Zulu feast.

“We experienced an incredibly generous, welcoming spirit from the community,” he said.

On Wednesday, the team visited a high school in Khula Village to speak to high schoolers about their dreams, comparing their responses to high schoolers in Japan.

Wildlife in the spotlight

“We’ve also been talking to St Lucia residents about the hippos in their gardens, and the warthogs and bats.

“A major point of interest for us is the monitoring and oversight of hippos and visitors’ behaviour around them.

“Our host, Nicky Kemp, very kindly explained to us how the problems – in some ways the welcome problems – of the hippos that make St Lucia so unique, but also make it a place where tourists and outsiders visit, how they are educated about the dangers of getting too close to hippos. Also how they deal with it in terms of the monitoring, as well as the oversight of visitors.”

A memorable situation the Secret Doors team found themselves in on Saturday was braaing in the rain with JP van der Merwe, owner of the stationery shop in St Lucia.

“Undercover, he expertly conducted a fantastic braai in torrential rain, which was a great thing for the Japanese crew to experience,” said Bush.

While St Lucia is a long way from Japan, Bush said, it’s so unique that he believes people who visit South Africa will consider visiting the region, and really believes they should.

Secret Doors airs weekdays at 8pm and is watched by between three and four million people across Japan.

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